Fisherman Islands railway line

Last updated

Fisherman Islands railway line
Overview
Termini Dutton Park
Fisherman Islands
Continues from Gold Coast line
NSW North Coast line
Operation
Opened1980
Operator(s) Aurizon
Pacific National
Technical
Line length24 km (15 mi)
Track gauge 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)

The Fisherman Islands railway line is an Australian dual gauge freight only line to the Port of Brisbane.

Dual gauge line of track for trains of two separate track gauges

A dual gauge railway is a track that allows the passage of trains of two different track gauges. It is sometimes called a "mixed gauge" track. A dual gauge track consists of three rails. There will be two vital rails, one for each gauge close together and a third rail, a "common" rail further away. Sometimes, four rails are required using two outer and two inner rails to create the dual gauge. Dual gauge is not to be confused with a "third rail" or "check or guard rails".

Port of Brisbane Suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Port of Brisbane is the shipping port and coastal suburb of Brisbane, on the east coast of Queensland, Australia. It is located in the lower reaches of the Brisbane River on Fisherman Island, an artificial island reclaimed from the smaller Fisherman Islands group at the mouth of the river. It currently is the third busiest port in Australia and the nation's fastest growing container port. It includes the main shipping channel across Moreton Bay which extends 90 kilometres (56 mi) north to Mooloolaba and is dredged to maintain a depth of fourteen metres at the lowest tide.

History

In 1980, Queensland Rail built a freight-only line between Cannon Hill and Fisherman Islands. [1] It paralleled the existing Cleveland line from Cannon Hill to Lytton Junction, east of Lindum, before continuing to Fisherman Islands on its own alignment. [2] [3]

Queensland Rail railway operator in Queensland, Australia

Queensland Rail, also known as QR, is a railway operator in Queensland, Australia. Owned by the Queensland Government, it operates suburban and long-distance passenger services, as well as owning and maintaining approximately 6,600 kilometres of track.

Cannon Hill railway station railway station in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Cannon Hill railway station is located on the Cleveland line in Queensland, Australia. The station serves the Brisbane suburb of Cannon Hill.

Cleveland railway line

The Cleveland railway line is a suburban railway line extending 37.3 kilometres (23.2 mi) east-southeast from Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland, Australia. It is part of the Queensland Rail City network.

In 1992, the Queensland Government announced that construction would commence on an 11 kilometre dual gauge rail link from Dutton Park to Cannon Hill, with the existing line from Cannon Hill to Fisherman Islands to be converted to dual gauge. This would connect the Port of Brisbane to the NSW North Coast line and the standard gauge network. Prior to its construction, freight between the Port of Brisbane and New South Wales had to be either transhipped or wagons bogie exchanged at Acacia Ridge. [2] This was funded under the Federal Government's One Nation Program.

Government of Queensland state government of Queensland, Australia

The Government of Queensland, also referred to as the Queensland Government, is the Australian state democratic administrative authority of Queensland. The Government of Queensland, a parliamentary constitutional monarchy, was formed in 1859 as prescribed in its Constitution, as amended from time to time. Since the Federation of Australia in 1901, Queensland has been a state of the Commonwealth of Australia, and the Constitution of Australia regulates its relationship with the Commonwealth. Under the Australian Constitution, Queensland ceded legislative and judicial supremacy to the Commonwealth, but retained powers in all matters not in conflict with the Commonwealth. Key state government offices are located at 1 William Street in the Brisbane central business district.

Dutton Park railway station railway station in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Dutton Park railway station is located on the Beenleigh line in Queensland, Australia. It serves the Brisbane suburb of Dutton Park.

Track gauge conversion

Gauge conversion is the change of one railway track gauge to another. This may be required if loads are too heavy for the existing track gauge or if rail cars are of a broader gauge than the existing track gauge. Gauge conversion may become less important as time passes due to the development of variable gauge systems, also called Automatic Track Gauge Changeover Systems.

Construction commenced in September 1993. To avoid congestion, a grade separated junction was built at Dutton Park, where the new line branched off from the NSW North Coast line to allow the line to operate without interfering with Beenleigh and Cleveland line services. [2] [4] [5] [6]

Grade separation type of road junction

Grade separation is a method of aligning a junction of two or more surface transport axes at different heights (grades) so that they will not disrupt the traffic flow on other transit routes when they cross each other. The composition of such transport axes does not have to be uniform; it can consist of a mixture of roads, footpaths, railways, canals, or airport runways. Bridges, tunnels, or a combination of both can be built at a junction to achieve the needed grade separation.

North Coast railway line, New South Wales railway line in New South Wales, Australia

The North Coast Line is the primary rail route in the Mid North Coast and Northern Rivers regions of New South Wales, Australia, and forms a major part of the Sydney–Brisbane rail corridor.

Beenleigh railway line

The Beenleigh railway line is a suburban railway line extending 40.1 km (24.9 mi) east-southeast from Brisbane Central railway station, the state capital of Queensland, Australia. It is part of the Queensland Rail City network.

On 15 July 1996, the line opened from Dutton Park to Murarrie. [7] Narrow gauge workings commenced to Fisherman Islands in November 1996 [8] with the first standard gauge train operating on 28 March 1997. [9]

Murarrie railway station railway station in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Murarrie railway station is located on the Cleveland line in Queensland, Australia. It serves the Brisbane suburb of Murarrie.

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References

  1. ↑ South east Queensland transport infrastructure rollout since 1975 Brisbane Times 6 July 2010
  2. 1 2 3 "Green light for Fisherman Island standard gauge" Railway Digest May 1992 page 171
  3. ↑ Brisbane Standard Gauge lines track diagram SA Track & Signal
  4. ↑ "Fisherman Islands Standard Gauge Progress Report" Railway Digest November 1993 pages 467/8
  5. ↑ "Fisherman Islands line update" Railway Digest October 1994 page 22
  6. ↑ "Fisherman Islands line update" Railway Digest September 1995 page 15
  7. ↑ "Fisherman Islands Line Opened - Partly" Railway Digest September 1996 page 18
  8. ↑ "Fisherman Island Delay" Railway Digest January 1997 page 14
  9. ↑ "First Standard Gauge Train to Fisherman Islands" Railway Digest May 1997 page 13
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